Follow up: 7 weeks after my car accident

Hello all!

It’s been a while I know….I have been struggling to write since my car accident. If you want, you can read about it and the weeks that followed here. So I thought instead of trying to find something to write about, I would just share those struggles with you. Because as much as I want to say that it has been easy, it has not. Don’t get me wrong, it could have been way worse! I was lucky to walk out of my car with nothing broken. I really was. But I think what we often underestimate is the toll such trauma takes on one’s spirit. So let’s talk about that.

How life can change in an instant: motor vehicle accident

Hello all!

Time just seems to be flying by recently. I know I have not written a post in a few weeks and I do apologize for that. I am normally more active than I have been in the past weeks. But I do have an excuse…..A little less than 2 weeks ago, I was in a car accident. For those on this site’s Facebook page, thank you for your support 🙂 The recovery has been harder than I thought and I am slowly getting there. The goal of this article is to share my experience of this accident but most importantly the advice that was given to me. How to use the traditional way of healing. Because that’s what I am about. How to heal using the way of our ancestors. Yes, I am fully aware it is highly improbable that any of them ever got into a car accident but bear with me….Continue reading →

Native American medicine picking: The experience of picking sage

Sage in Merritt, BC

Hello all!

Wow is it ever a gorgeous weekend on the Canadian West Coast! Grandfather Sun shining, blue sky and perfect temperatures. Loving it! If you have seen my site’s Facebook page, you know that I had the privilege to go medicine picking yesterday. I went with my healing circle as the Elder and facilitators go every year and know the area well. It was so nice just to relax and look at the scenery on the way there (as I am normally driving and miss out on all that is around). A perfect Saturday! I even got back with one hell of a sunburn on my back (as the one thing I had forgotten was sunscreen…).

So let’s talk about Native American medicine picking 🙂 In this case, picking sage in Merritt, BC.

Hopi Kachina dolls: Meaningful art

Hello all!

Sun Kachina doll

How is everyone doing in this wonderful Spring time? I hope you are able to enjoy sunshine and nature blooming wherever you are 🙂 I know I am enjoying it on the Canadian West Coast. I have been thinking about what I could be writing about. And Hopi Kachina (Katsina) dolls popped in my mind. Yes weird things pop in my mind 😉 I have posted pictures of Kachina dolls on this site’s Facebook page in the past and I just find them so beautiful. And as we will see, they are also meaningful and spiritual.

So let’s take a look at the Hopi Kachina dolls, their origins, meaning and their beauty.

Pow wow time: My experience and why I enjoy them so much

Hello all!

Everyone on the dance floor!

Happy Easter to all! It is another sunny Spring day on the Canadian West Coast. Nature is awake and beautiful and love is in the air 🙂 Needless to say, I am feeling good! Before I go to a friend’s place for Easter dinner, I thought I would talk about something that does make me very happy: Pow wow time 🙂 If you follow this site’s Facebook page, you probably have seen that I went to a Pow wow last night. If not, click on the link I just inserted and go check out the videos I posted! This post will focus mostly on the Pow wow I attended last night. To learn more about the Pow wow ceremony, I strongly encourage you to read my previous article explaining it. But for now, it is Pow wow time!

Native American Counting Coup: A practice of the Great Plains

Hello all!

Man holding a coup stick

How is your weekend going? Mine is going fantabulous as a person close to my heart would say. Isn’t that just a great made up word! I am loving my weekend for real. Even though it is raining on the West coast today. As the same person would say, when it is raining, it is because Mother Earth needs to cleanse herself. What a great way to look at it! Anyhoo, I was thinking about what to write about yesterday. And then I remember that I posted a picture a few days ago on this site’s Facebook page of a man holding a coup stick. So today, we will learn about Native American Counting Coup, a practice of the Great Plains people. Are you intrigued? Yes? Let’s do this then 🙂

Pacific Northwest Potlatch: a wonderful tradition

Hello everyone!

Klallam people potlatch at Port Townsend

I hope you are having a great weekend. In the Pacific Northwest, we are seeing and feeling Spring in the air! The trees are blooming (you might have seen the pictures I posted on Facebook), the temperature is mild, the birds are singing. And the rain is falling….It is the Pacific Northwest after all! 🙂 Nevertheless, I would not want to live anywhere else. It is a land full of culture, traditions and the scenery cannot be beaten. Mother Earth is beautiful and I am thankful for all my relations in nature.

So today I thought I would discuss a beautiful tradition of this territory: the Pacific Northwest Potlatch. You are probably wondering what that is. So let’s get started! Continue reading →

Chief Dan George: Tribal leader, activist, author and actor

Hello all!

How is everyone doing? I am away from home this weekend for a much due visit to my family. I am however missing my home with all the ceremonies and culture it has. I just miss home. However, I am grateful to be surrounded by love. So, as I am not on the West Coast right now, I thought I would write an article about a great leader from that area: Chief Dan George. Oftentimes known (and sometimes criticized) for his acting career, Chief Dan George was also a residential school survivor, a leader and outspoken about the rights of Indigenous people. Let’s hear about his life and great and wise words.

Actor Russell Means: Oglala Lakota activist

Hello all!

Russell Means in 1995

How is everyone doing? Boy was this week crazy! There was a full moon last Monday, part of the moon cycle, and it was felt in my clients at work! So taking a breath and taking care of myself this weekend.

I first really came across the life and work of actor Russell Means when I wrote about Wounded Knee II (read my article here), where Means led a 71 days occupation of the Wounded Knee site to show disagreement and protest against the then politics and injustice. I have since read quite a bit more about Means so I thought I would sum it up here. Let’s talk about Russell Means, actor, activist and the man with 9 lives.

Apache Chief Geronimo: a fierce warrior and leader

Hello all!

Hope you are doing well and have been enjoying yourself! Yesterday, on the West Coast of Canada, the sun was shining and the sky was blue 🙂 I also just attended a sweat and got rid of a few things and feelings I needed to get rid of. Feels good! A few weeks ago, I posted a picture of Geronimo on this site’s Facebook page and said that an article was coming about this great Apache chief. So here it is!! A wonderful and fierce leader and medicine man. And one hell of a warrior! Let’s talk about Apache Chief Geronimo.